CORONA: Thieves pluck dozens of mailboxes from ground

Thieves are going to extremes in Riverside County, poaching clusters of residential mailboxes right out of the ground, leaving only a cement base and bolts behind.

Federal investigators who handle postal crimes in Southern California say the rash of thefts appear to be isolated to the area.

“This is highly unusual,” said Stacia Crane, spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service who handles postal crimes in the region. “It’s not easy to take an entire unit. They’re in cement and bolted down, and they’re not lightweight.”

Federal postal investigators suspect the units are being taken for the mail inside, a federal crime that carries up to five years in prison.

The large metal community mailboxes carry 16 units to a cluster and weigh about 150 pounds, and have been disappearing over the past several months in the Sycamore Creek area just south of Corona in unincorporated Riverside County.

Resident Joseph Liberty was shocked during his daily trip to pick up mail from his Sycamore Creek community box on Jan. 2, when all he saw was nothing.

“It’s like coming home and your house is gone. All you see is the cement base and bolts coming up where it used to be,” Liberty said.

At first, he thought it had been removed for repair.

“Then I thought, holy cow, after (my wife) called the post office. They said somebody stole it,” Liberty said.

Riverside County sheriff’s Sgt. Lisa McConnell said two community mailbox thefts have been reported to the Sheriff’s Department, most recently on Jan. 2. And Sean Frates, general manager of Sycamore Creek Community Association, said a third box with 16 doors was stolen in the same area, making the total number of boxes taken from the Sycamore Creek area 48.

Detectives in Corona and San Bernardino County said they haven’t seen those types of crimes in their areas.

Mailbox theft is not a recent criminal invention.

Last month, in Anchorage, Alaska, officials were looking for a man who snatched four big blue U.S. Postal Service bins from post offices, including two on Christmas Day, according to news reports.

But lifting the large cluster boxes — found in newer residential areas where homeowners associations often install them — is a more recent variation. The newer cluster boxes costing about $1,400 have been installed in neighborhoods over the past several years to provide higher security than older boxes.

“They’ve improved the design because of mail theft issues. The older boxes you could take a screwdriver and pop them open,” said Edward Schade, owner of Orange County Mail Boxes.

But the improved boxes use locks that don’t open so easily, requiring thieves to need additional time to tinker with them.

“They can’t get into them easily, so they have to take them. It’s too secure,” Schade said. “They need to cut, grind and use a drill. It’s a lot of work, but it’s easier than trying to break into them onsite.”

Tire marks line the gutter and curb leading to where Liberty’s mailbox had been.

Bent bolts and a concrete footing are all that remain. He and others suspect a vehicle rammed the boxes to dislodge them.

Schade was replacing the unit with similar, high security boxes Tuesday, Jan. 8.

“This is the highest security mailbox out there. It’s the least likely to get stolen,” Schade said.

Residents are being advised to check their mail daily because the majority of thefts occur at night. They are asked to alert authorities when witnessing anyone tampering with the boxes, Schade and authorities said.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Lake Elsinore sheriff’s station at 951-245-3300.